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Now here's a ribbon cutting event that even typically skeptical
small-business owners can get behind: The federal government is
cutting reams and reams of red tape.

In an effort to ferret out wasteful spending and streamline
processes, federal agencies from the Environmental Protection
Agency to the Small Business Administration to the Internal
Revenue Service yesterday proposed their final regulatory reform plans. All told,
the moves, which have been in the works since January when
President Barack Obama first called
for the initiative, are projected to save U.S. taxpayers more
than $10 billion over the next five years.

While obviously helpful for reining in costs at a time when
the national
budget is so top of mind, the move is seen as a boon for
small businesses, in particular. Here are just three regulations
that are seen as onerous to small businesses, along with the
respective agency's proposed reforms:

Adopting a single, electronic lender application for
loan programs.
According to the SBA's final plan, providing a single
e-application for all 7(a) loans could reduce the paperwork
burden on lenders, which in turn impacts small business
borrowers. And the measure could result in greater lender
participation, particularly among small community banks, credit
unions and rural lenders, says the SBA. Further, the
e-application could help reduce the rate that applications get
rejected and improve the timeliness of delivering loan
approvals -- thereby speeding up the delivery of loan proceeds
to small businesses.

Clarifying the way export products are
classified.
The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security is
offering to revamp how companies identify and classify their
export products and services. By basing product classifications
on objective, physical criteria exporters can more easily
determine their items’ classification, which in turn helps
determine if a license is required and cuts down on the time it
takes to start exporting. Clearer standards will reduce
uncertainty, increase predictability and better facilitate
lawful trade, said the Commerce Dept. in its final plan.

Expediting payments to small-business
contractors.
The Department of Defense plans to issue a new rule that
expedites payments on contracts to as many as 60,000 small
businesses. By extending to small businesses a payment policy
that used to only be available to "disadvantaged" firms, owners
working with the Defense Dept. will be able to receive payments
quicker -- after invoices are received and before the normal
payment due dates. Accelerating payments to all small
businesses improves their cash flow and removes some of the
burden of obtaining extra financing, according the final plan
from the Defense Dept.

"This is definitely a positive step," says Molly Brogan, a
spokeswoman for the National Small Business Association in
Washington, D.C. "We've been supportive of the President's goal
of reducing the burden on small business and easing regulation
where appropriate."

Still, Brogan and other small business advocates aren't entirely
convinced. They note that new and prospective rules and
regulations could wind-up undermining the benefits of the
administration's latest effort.

The Dodd-Frank financial reforms and the healthcare overhaul, for
instance, are often cited as contributing new costs for
businesses. Similarly, a proposed rule from the National Labor Relations Board, which
would expedite union election campaigns, and the Department of Labor's persuader rule --
requiring greater disclosure on consultants hired by
businesses during a union campaign -- might also force added
burdens on businesses, says Brogan.

Cass Sunstein, the Administrator of the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, discounted those critiques. According to the
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, regulation costs
were higher in 2007 and 2008 than they were in 2009 and 2010,
says Sunstein who is leading the regulation-reform charge. "Many
people are focusing on the cost of new regulations, and so are
we."

Will your business benefit from the federal
government's effort to trim
inefficiencies? Let us know how in the
comments section below.